“Honesty is the richest legacy one can leave behind.” –William Shakespeare

By Kwasi Fraser, Former Town of Purcellville Mayor

Mayor Stan Milan, Vice Mayor Erin Rayner, and Council members Mary Jane Williams, Caleb Stought, and Kevin Wright conspicuously avoid discussing the 2013 debt restructuring necessitated by the enormous debt we inherited from my predecessor. This omission reveals the fallacy in their assertions and undercuts their attempts to undermine our accomplishments. 

Instead, they produce charts riddled with half-truths to perpetuate their deceit. The chart below details the outcomes of the 2017 debt restructuring and refinancing, illustrating why we followed our Financial Advisers’ recommendations. This chart is not new; it was shared both before and after our decision in 2017.

Curiously, Milan, Rayner, and Williams, Stought, and Wright fail to articulate what actions they would have taken in 2017 when confronted with interest-only loans and impending balloon payment increases of $1.3 million and $1.6 million. It appears they have no solution, except massive rate increases and development, yet they find it convenient to deceitfully criticize and discredit the strategies recommended by our advisors and unanimously adopted by Town Councils.

I urge them to embrace the truth and recognize that the sole debt challenge confronting the Town of Purcellville lies within the wastewater treatment fund. The solution involves having a policy that can allocate portions of the meals tax revenue to address the substantial $1 million in chargebacks from the General Fund to the Water and Sewer Fund, reduce operational expenses, pursue grants for future capital infrastructure projects, and embrace innovation in response to an aging workforce and advance technology. Massive rate increases and annexation are not sustainable options.

Let us all commit to honesty and integrity, for in these virtues lie the true strength and future prosperity of our community.